Why Gazelle From Kingsman: The Secret Service Looks So Familiar
In 2014, Taron Egerton came onto the scene with his starring role in the off-kilter spy flick "Kingsman: The Secret Service." Based on the graphic novel series "The Secret Service" by Mark Millar and Dave Gibbons, the film focuses on a young man named Eggsy who is recruited by Harry aka Galahad, played by Colin Firth, to train as a spy for an organization called the Kingsmen. His training comes to an abrupt end when a man named Richmond Valentine, played by the one and only Samuel L. Jackson, implements a new technology on free cell phones across the world to kill everyone not handpicked to be in his new utopia.
While Egerton was the up-and-coming actor at the forefront of the film, there were quite a few unknown yet talented actors in the cast, including Sofia Boutella playing Gazelle, Valentine's uniquely deadly henchwoman, if you will. For many viewers, Boutella will seem very familiar, and with good reason. Since nabbing the role of Gazelle in "Kingsman: The Secret Service," Boutella has played a handful of major roles in high profile movies. Though in a few cases, her visual transformation for the character she's playing makes it a little hard to tell it's her.
Here's why Boutella, the actress who plays Gazelle in "Kingsman: The Secret Service," looks so familiar.
Sofia Boutella played Jaylah in Star Trek Beyond
Shortly after "Kingsman: The Secret Service" was released, Boutella joined the cast of the third film in the "Star Trek" reboot series, titled "Star Trek Beyond." The series stars Chris Pine as Captain James T. Kirk, Zachary Quinto as Spock, and Karl Urban, Zoe Saldana, Simon Pegg, and others playing key supporting characters. As for Boutella's role, she plays a new character called Jaylah.
Jaylah is an alien warrior the crew of the USS Enterprise meet when they become stranded on the planet Altamid while being pursued by the vicious warlord Krall, played by Idris Elba. Boutella's character is the only survivor of an earlier attack by Krall on her people, now using the shell of an old Starfleet ship, the USS Franklin, as her makeshift home. With her connection to Krall and his history, along with her great fighting skills, Jaylah becomes a key ally for Kirk and his crew as they attempt to rescue those kidnapped by Krall and stop his plan to ignite a war.
Unfortunately for Boutella, there have been no further "Star Trek" films released in the reboot series — at least not yet — leaving no opportunities for Jaylah to return. But at least Jaylah gets a happy ending, as Kirk and the crew of the USS Enterprise help her get accepted to Starfleet Academy, leaving her with a bright future ahead.
Boutella played the French spy Delphine Lasalle in Atomic Blonde
Released shortly after "Star Trek Beyond" was the action spy movie "Atomic Blonde," starring Charlize Theron as MI6 agent Lorraine Broughton and based on the 2012 graphic novel "The Coldest City" by Antony Johnston. Set in 1989 right before the collapse of the Berlin Wall, the film follows Lorraine as she searches for "The List," a highly classified listing of all the active agents of all spy agencies working in Berlin. While there, Lorraine gets help from fellow MI6 agent David Percival, played by James McAvoy.
While Lorraine deals with various troubles in West Berlin, she meets a woman named Delphine Lasalle, played by Boutella, who claims to be an inexperienced French agent. Lasalle helps Lorraine deal with a KGB agent named Bremovych (Roland Møller), sparking a romantic relationship between the two women. Although the relationship seems real, Lasalle also spends her spare time spying on Percival, who she believes has The List. Later on, Lasalle uses information she gets from her escapades and through Lorraine to threaten the agent, which leads him to find Lasalle and kill her before Lorraine can stop him. Eventually, Lorraine finds Percival and avenges her lover's death.
In the graphic novel, Lasalle is a male character who Lorraine seduces, but they switched the gender and gave her a bigger role in the film version. Once "Atomic Blonde" was released, the relationship between Lorraine and Lasalle became a fan-favorite part of the movie.
Boutella played the terrifying Ahmanet in The Mummy reboot
In 2017, Universal Pictures rebooted the classic "The Mummy" franchise as part of the "Dark Universe," a cinematic universe centered around all the classic movie monsters. While the new "The Mummy" may share the name of the beloved 1999 film, the new action flick is very different, and not necessarily in a good way. Starring Tom Cruise as US Army Sergeant Nick Morton, the story follows his character as the army unearths the old sarcophagus of an Egyptian princess named Ahmanet, played by Boutella.
Of course, the army decides to take the sarcophagus back to the US to study it, unknowingly reawakening Ahmanet. When she was alive, Ahmanet attempted to summon the Egyptian god Set, an evil god of chaos and violence, killing her family in the process. Ahmanet's people stopped her, and as punishment, they mummified her alive. Obviously, she now wants vengeance and to finish her original mission. That's where Nick comes in. Ahmanet wants to use Nick as a vessel for Set, and she needs an ancient dagger inlaid with a ruby for the ceremony.
As you'd expect, "The Mummy" has a lot of crazy action, and in the end, Nick and the others are able to stop Ahmanet and save the world. The film didn't do very well, earning a measly 16% on Rotten Tomatoes and underperforming at the box office, but many people saw Boutella's performance as the best part.
Boutella starred as Yasmine in the hit Amazon series Modern Love
One of Boutella's more recent projects, and her first television role, is playing Yasmine in the Amazon series "Modern Love." The show is an anthology series based off of the well-known New York Times column and podcast of the same name. The column features essays written by real people about their own experiences, and "Modern Love" brings eight of them to life. The show is star-studded, featuring well-known names like Tina Fey, Catherine Keener, and Anne Hathaway, and got positive reviews from critics.
As for Boutella, she stars in Season 1, Episode 5, "At the Hospital, an Interlude of Clarity," based on Brian Gittis's 2014 essay. In the episode, Boutella plays Yasmine opposite John Gallagher Jr.'s Rob. On the couple's second date, Rob accidentally severs a major blood vessel when he cuts his arm on a martini glass. This leads them to the hospital, where they begin exchanging deeper and more personal secrets as the night goes on.
It's clear that audiences love "Modern Love," as it didn't take long for the series to get renewed for a second season in October of 2019 (via Variety). Unfortunately, the show suffered delays due to the pandemic, but the second season appears to finally be on its way. "Modern Love" season 2 will also feature more big time actors, with Kit Harington, Dominique Fishback, and Minnie Driver as a few familiar names on the list (The Hollywood Reporter).